Steve Pettit to replace Stephen Jones as president of BJU

For those concerned about Pettit not having a doctorate, nothing that can’t be easily solved by BJU giving him an honorary title and calling it good.

J/K! :-)!

It is incongruous to say a man has to have a MDiv to pastor a church (even as small as 50!) but no need for a man to have a PhD level degree to lead an institution of higher learning. But typical for fundamentalism.

It’s taken a couple of generations for the MDiv. So, wait another generation for the PhD.

[Jim]

It is incongruous to say a man has to have a MDiv to pastor a church (even as small as 50!) but no need for a man to have a PhD level degree to lead an institution of higher learning. But typical for fundamentalism.

I recently sat in front of an accreditation committee from a regional accrediting association and there were indeed expectations and inquiries about the academic credentials for both faculty and administration — particularly in the graduate school. While they did not draw the line precisely, it was very clear that formulas and expectations are being put in place regarding terminal degrees though not necessarily with the requirement that the terminal degree had to be in that specific discipline or area of administration. I would note that, as Dr. Doran implied, the posture was not that it was a “deal breaker” for senior administrative officers to lack a terminal degree, but they were definitely looking for “forward progress”. Someone with an Ed.D. or a Ph.D. in a non-administrative area could have their degree counted even if they were dual administration-faculty. The emphasis was definitely on having faculty teaching generally “in-field” with terminal degrees or in pursuit of them, but there was conversation about administration ranging from deans to department heads. They also informed us that the standards were being raised in the future and that they wanted the ratio of terminal degrees to graduate degrees to show evidence of increase at the time of the next review. However, there is not a uniform code in place at this time to which all the regional associations are adhering (though I suspect that eventually, it could come.) I would also note that they really did not want to count “professional” degrees like a D.Min as sufficient.
This dynamic change puts pressure on TRACS and other Christian accrediting agencies to demonstrate their own commitment to raising academic standards.

(And I’m not going to even address the pressure to publish that continues to grow…)

[JKHutch]

With regard to the issue that has been raised concerning Steve Pettit’s lack of a terminal degree in education, I believe that Dave has provided a thorough answer in both his posts—both in terms of the academic issues and spiritual qualifications. There is a newer trend in higher ed towards hiring presidents from the business/political world who can promote the institution, attract donors, and of course, students.

Case in point here in South Carolina, the College of Charleston (an accredited university which is part of the state’s university system and has a 220-year history) just hired a new president, who has a B.S. degree and a law degree. He is the current Lt. Governor of South Carolina, Glenn McConnell, with no experience in the field of education or academia. A number of applicants for the position have terminal degrees in academic disciplines, but the Trustees chose an alumnus with name recognition who could promote the university’s interests. This selection has no bearing whatsoever on the university’s accreditation status.

Of course, a J.D. (law degree) is a terminal degree. I would also hazard a guess that there is a CAO or a Provost with a terminal degree that manages the actual academic affairs at College of Charleston. An example of this would be Liberty University — the Chancellor, has a J.D., but there are multiple academics throughout the administration. Many college Presidents today are largely fund-raisers and visionaries. Maybe the same is true at BJU — I don’t have a lot of knowledge about their current structure.

President of the entire NC university system until 2010 only had an MBA as his most advanced degree.

I am in the midst of getting my PhD, and I can’t for the life of me think how this work would be useful for administrative leadership. That said, I would think that Bob Jones would select someone with academic credentials and educational experience commensurate with the status that they want. The presidents of Clemson, Furman, and Wofford all have PhDs. Many other respectable private colleges have presidents with a J.D. or an MBA, both of which are serious post-bachelor’s programs. Most of those college presidents, in addition to their graduate degrees, also have significant experience either in academic administration (e.g., provost) or managing large organizations.

Now, Steve Pettit is light on the academic side. He doesn’t even have an MDiv, which is the standard degree for clergy in most denominations that have academic requirements. Does he have some compensation on the administrative side? I think he was the chief executive of a college ministry. I have no idea its size, but if it was at least moderately large, he has some experience there. One might add in his ministry experience as leadership success.

So, not an ideal candidate perhaps, but they could have done worse. Pettit is a good bit older than Stephen Jones. I wonder how long the board envisions him as the leader. Perhaps what they want right now is someone with a good heart and a good personality to help the school get over its hostile reputation. Survival seems like an optimistic outcome for BJU. Maybe in 5 or 10 years, if they stabilize enrollment and finances, they can think about getting someone with excellent credentials to take them to the next level.

According to this article in the Boston Globe, college presidents without a PHD seems to be a trend.

http://www.bostonglobe.com/metro/2012/05/13/wanted-college-president-required/K2Wm3KfSZ7FB7TSVCKg5YO/story.html

Not to pile on too much, but the president of Wayne State University, a major research university here in Detroit, is Alan Gilmour, former CFO and vice-chairman of Ford Motor Company. His highest degree is an MBA. He was hired for his leadership ability, financial acumen, ties to local and national business leaders, fundraising skills, etc., not for his academic achievements or standing.

[Dave Doran] The chief executive officer of a place like BJU does not have to be an academic expert. He needs to be a competent chief executive officer. It is more important that he be a good leader than that he understand the nuts and bolts of academic life. They have competent people to handle that aspect of the work, so I have no concerns about Steve’s lack of terminal degree.

In terms of leadership, I think Steve will do an excellent job. He is a man of character who lives and speaks with integrity. He understands ministry. He has a heart for and has spent his life engaged in Great Commission ministry. I think this is a great move.

I appreciated Dr. Doran’s post.

I get where BJU is coming from here, and agree that Steve Pettit while it would be nice for him to have a Ph.D./Ed.D, it’s not like he will be teaching undergrads in class every day. He is an administrator and business person who is in charge of a multi-million dollar educational institution. He is widely traveled, well known, passionate about the University, and doctrinally sound. That’s what the CEO of a University needs to be…someone who donors and Board members can be comfortable dealing with and who can effectively represent ‘the brand’ to others. The BJU website says this about his qualifications:

Pettit formerly served as camp director and staff evangelist for Northland Camp and Conference Center in Dunbar, Wisconsin. Additionally, Pettit has also served for the last three years as the national director for Cross Impact Ministries, a ministry which partners with local churches to minister on college campuses across the nation.

Pettit is also currently a member of the boards of both the Central Africa Baptist College in Kitwe, Zambia, and Bob Jones University.

He’s been on the Board of BJU for a long time, so it’s not like he has no idea what he’s walking into - he’s been in plenty of meetings with Drs. Jones and budget committees, etc. He’s no neophyte when it comes to making business decisions. It’s a little out of the box, but I do think that the Board made a good choice. I’ve met him personally many times and am sure that he is wise enough to recruit men (or women) to compensate for areas that he knows are weaknesses, and wish him the best going forward.

[Kent McCune]

Not to pile on too much, but the president of Wayne State University, a major research university here in Detroit, is Alan Gilmour, former CFO and vice-chairman of Ford Motor Company. His highest degree is an MBA. He was hired for his leadership ability, financial acumen, ties to local and national business leaders, fundraising skills, etc., not for his academic achievements or standing.

EVANGELIST Paul Dixon was the highly successful President of Cedarville University.

Not to be too snarky, I hope, but Jim, what exactly are your educational qualifications for passing such hard judgments on this selection? Have you served an academic administrator at a college, university, or seminary? Have you served on the board of any such institutions? Perhaps you stayed at a Holiday Inn Express?

I recognize that this is a forum for opinion, but I wonder if some of our opinions shouldn’t be more modest in scope (e.g., indicting fundamentalism over this choice) and claim. Ideal scenarios are great to discuss and potentially reach, but they don’t demand that real world solutions be viewed so harshly. There is no actual or technical requirement that the president of BJU have a terminal degree and it would seem, at least to me, unreasonable to disqualify the best candidate for that reason alone (or to restrict the search by that criterion).

Since I’m a Detroit homeboy, if it’s good enough for Wayne State University (no bastion of fundamentalism), then it’s good enough for me!

Yes I did stay at a Holiday Inn Express (last week in Guthrie OK)

I called my view my opinion and I am entitled to that

I don’t consider your questioning me snarky … so OK with that.

More of my opinion:

• I think Pettit is a logical choice for BJU. After all he is an evangelist and the founder of BJU was an evangelist
• I consider Pettit a hopeful choice for BJU. I heard him speak at the Sam Horn Central Seminary installation service. Perhaps Pettit can bring BJU into more of a moderate fundamentalism / conservative evangelicalism like Central.
• Beyond that I really don’t care much. Never been to BJU. Never been to Greenville, South Carolina.

Maranatha’s model makes sense. They have a President with a solid Pastoral background, and two EdD’s on staff to handle the nuts and bolts of the academic realm (accreditation, etc.). My take - if the accreditation folks don’t require a specific terminal degree for the President, then it probably isn’t a real issue to be concerned with.

In it’s beginning, Bob Jones College was branded as a liberal arts college where Christian parents could send their children to protect them from having their faith stolen by godless secular schools. (See “Three College Shipwrecks” by Bob Jones Sr.) In the 60’s and into the early 80’s it was the branded as being one of if not the largest Christian liberal arts university. Hopefully Steve Pettit will help define the brand, stabilize the situation, rally the troops, and address needs like academic accreditation and identity.

BTW, the introduction of inter-scholastic sports has exposed many to the realization that there are other Christian liberal arts universities and colleges out there. Now that they’re fellowshipping in athletics maybe they need to compare notes. After all, I understand Brody the Bruin attended the announcement of the new president.